Subdued Hope
by TheRoseShadow21
Summary: Another murder , another class trial , another execution. Makoto Naegi is still alive , and so is Kirigiri , and he can't help but wonder-what does it really mean to survive. Will their friendship be able to do that?. Can be interpreted as NaegiXKirigiri romance , based on the anime events , drabble-type one-shot. Rated T to be safe.


**This one-shot takes place in Episode 7 of the Dangan Ronpa anime, starting during Celes' exectution and ending just before the scene between Naegi and Kirigiri in the locker room. As this follows the anime timeline, there shouldn't be any spoilers, but I have added in a few things from personal opinion to fill this out. It's from Naegi's viewpoint. **

**Also , I am putting this in the games category as Dangan Ronpa doesn't have a separate archive for its anime. **

**Enjoy**

_Where were you, Kirigiri-san?_

As they all stand there watching Celes-san's execution as it begins, this is, oddly enough, what Makoto Naegi wonders.

That and he thinks that he would like to hold her hand, as a gesture of friendship. But he doesn't. This is Kyouko Kirigiri after all. The very first word she had said to him was an annoyed 'What?' when she had caught his eye and he had stared a moment too long. And despite the fact they had eventually formed a good team at Hope's Peak, some of that frostiness still remained. So , after thinking that , and taking another look at her , he turns away , pretending he is watching the execution , when in fact he is looking at everybody else's reactions.

Hagakure-kun had his mouth hanging open, still shaken. It had been a close call for him , after all. Asahina-san was crying , and Oogami-san stood there , glaring , but being a pillar of support for her sobbing friend. Fukawa-san was….well , she was still Genocider Sho , if those mad plaits were anything to go by , but he couldn't see her so well as she was obscured by Togami-kun , who had his arms crossed , looking bored. As for Kirigiri-san…he looked at the picture his mind had taken: her face was blank , so at first glance , she seemed as bored , but Naegi had long learnt that she rarely showed her emotions by her facial expression . Sure , there may be the occasional tugging at the edges of her purple eyes , or around her mouth , but on the whole , it was her posture , tone of voice , choice of words and other little gestures that showed her feelings. In this case , she was standing stiffly , her firsts were clenched , the line of her mouth was hard and thin. She was as affected as the rest of them were.

Finally , the execution was over. They all left as quickly as possible. Kirigiri-san in particular looked as if she was on a mission.

_Where were you , Kirigiri-san? Where are you going?_

The second question fell out of his mouth as he ran to catch up with her. She turned, regarded him coolly , then held out her gloved hand.

He blinked in confusion until he realised that she was showing him something. A locker key, to be precise. The tag was tucked underneath the key itself, so he wasn't able to see the number, but his mind started making connections.

"This is what Celes-san gave you?" he asked. Kirigiri-san simply nodded and continued walking. He raced to catch up.

"She could've just destroyed it afterwards, yet she simply hides it away. " Kirigiri-san said out of the blue.

Naegi didn't answer. He had a feeling this was going to lead to an interesting insight.

"Celestia said so herself." Kirigiri-san continued "She didn't believe Alter Ego could bring us hope. "

Naegi stifled a chuckle. Kirigiri-san was the only one who didn't call Celes-san by the nickname they'd all given her. But he had started to get what she was trying to say

"She had another source of hope. Her dream, remember?" he said.

"Which led her to murder. "She replied

"Even so….we've been here for a long time. "

"That we have. "

"So…I'm sure that on some level, Celes-san knew what Alter Ego meant to us …I mean, to have gone this long without having any….." Naegi trailed off, not entirely sure what it was he was trying to say. "Anyway, I guess we have to hold on to what we still have now. And you sure it is Alter Ego we're going to find?"

"What else would it be?" Kirigiri-san's voice held a note of irritation. Yet at the same time, she nodded at him, as if saying he knew what he was trying to say. Naegi smiled gratefully.

"I guess you have a point, Kirigiri-san."

They walked in silence the rest of the way. Again and again, he tried and failed to ask her where she had been. Truth be told, he was slightly afraid of being cut off with a cold 'nothing' yet again. But he wanted to know. They were friends , after all.

Friends.

That was weird. He was fully aware that to get too attached was a risky business here, what with the threat of murder and execution around the corner. Like Maizono-san , a familiar face who had planned to frame him and yet ended up the victim. Then there was Oowada-kun and Ishimaru-kun , one executed , one murdered. Just like that , their 'kyoudai' bond had been destroyed.

And yet… Hagakure-kun still remained , he who was relaxed and languid around everyone , effortlessly tacking the honorific '-chi' to the end of everyone's name . Celes-san, charismatic and elegant, had got on well with most of them. Asahina-san, she cared deeply about everyone , had taken all the deaths harder than even he had , and had become fast friends with Oogami-san.

And then there was him , and Kirigiri-san. Ever since the end of the first trial , after Kuwata-kun had been executed , and she had come to talk to him about Maizono-san's motives , they had sat together at meal times , investigated the new floors , even collaborated to find evidence in the subsequent trials. He had learnt to figure out her feelings, and he was willing to defend her no matter what. She listened to him talk endlessly, and appeared to like his company. And they were able to get an intelligent , easy going banter going between them, the type that couldn't be achieved with any old person.

Yes , they were friends. Even though such friendship was a fragile thing, and he had to be careful while placing hope in it, they definitely had a friendship . If anything , it was proof of survival .  
The conversations, the meals , the laughter . Making friends, falling in love, nurturing dreams. Teasing each other, recounting memories , revealing secrets. Hoping.

All of this, _all _of it was evidence that they were still alive, still surviving, still able to move forward. This was why he had to know where she had been. None of this would mean anything if she didn't trust him too. They were supposed to be friends. This friendship was keeping him sane, keeping him together.

He would ask. Not now, but when the time was right. He would ask, and let hope overshadow the despair.

Maybe doing so would one day mean that they'd get out of here together.

**Well. Writing about the Dangan Ronpa characters is harder than I thought it'd be –but still pretty enjoyable to write. You'll probably see more Dangan Ronpa fics from me in the future :.) **

**Anyway, please leave feedback ^^ **


End file.
